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Turn Up The Volume

Form follows fantasy in an exclusive new collection from mane man Damien Carney.

Photography by damien carney

Ever the innovator, Damien Carney prides himself on being a trend-maker and rule-breaker when it comes to hair. Witness the body of work on these pages. “For this shoot, I wanted to push the boundaries of beauty, playing up fashion-forward looks, textures and shapes,” says Carney, who used unconventional techniques to achieve his objective, including varnishing strips of hair to give them a synthetic feel as well as recycling locks from the salon floor and then coloring them different shades to create tactility, contrast and dimension. “Texture is the one thing that constantly changes in the world of haute coiffure,” Carney says. “Be it voluminous, straight, wavy, curly or frizzy, I like to push hair, creating something that’s totally out of the ordinary. If it’s too much, I just pull back.”

ABOVE IMAGE: For this oversized Afro, Damien Carney first covered the model’s head with a wig cap. Next, he used hair he recycled from the salon floor, separating it with his fingers and misting it with a light adhesive spray before applying it to create a voluminous, exaggerated shape. To finish, he used clippers in a freehand manner to cut a strong, rounded form, then spritzed the hair with a temporary color spray.

ABOVE IMAGE: For this look, Carney used hair he recycled from the salon floor, coloring it different shades and allowing it to dry naturally. He then cut matted hair balls into random, small pieces, pulling them apart with his fingers and reassembling them over the model’s short hair. “The idea is that the shape looks irregular around the edges—the curves and dents add an organic feel,” he says.

ABOVE IMAGE: Carney combed hair wefts smooth on a flat surface, spraying them with glue and clear varnish to stiffen and add high shine. After building the shape on a head block, he attached the piece by sewing it to a wig cap he placed over the model’s real hair.

ABOVE IMAGE: To create this ultra-hip look, hue artist Sue Pemberton colored a 100-percent human-hair wig, alternating back-to-back slices with vivid, high-definition shades. Carney then cut the wig on the model’s head, using a one-length technique, before blow-drying and flat-ironing the style to create a super-polished, graphic shape.

About the Author

As Editor in Chief of American Salon, Kelley Donahue reports on all aspects of the professional beauty industry, including salon business-building strategies, seasonal hair and fashion trends, salon services and techniques, and timely issues impacting manufacturers, schools, salons and distributor principals. In addition to conducting photo shoots--one of which was the recipient of an ABBIES Award for Best Magazine Cover--Donahue also travels extensively throughout the U.S. and abroad, sourcing out new trends and representing American Salon at major industry functions and educational events.